2018 Vincent Gaudry Le Tournebride Sancerre 750 ml

If anyone living on the planet knows more about Loire Valley Sancerre than Master Sommelier Pascaline Lepeltier, a managing partner at Racines wine bar in New York City, we’d love to meet them. Lepeltier grew up in the Loire, worked in Michelin-starred restaurants in France, (including George V), moved to NYC to work at Rouge Tomate, and created a wine list that was named “Wine List of the Year 2017” by The World of Fine Wine. It’s clear that she’s a leading expert.      

It’s also clear that Lepeltier is a fan of Vincent Gaudry. His winery is in Sury-en-Vaux, a charming rural commune less than a ten-minute drive outside the hilltop town of Sancerre. In 2019, when she blew the lid off Gaudry’s creations, we weren’t surprised. “I have been following the work of Vincent Gaudry in Sancerre since 14 years now,” she wrote—making special thanks to her mentor for introducing her to Tournebride.

Lepeltier further explains that Gaudry has yet to become a “super star” because of his staunch adherence to biodynamic farming principles, even picking according to the biodynamic calendar. He’s practically evangelical about it. “But what he is achieving today is much more important,” says Lepeltier, and she’s not the only Loire-lover and expert who thinks so.

Lepeltier is just one of the many accomplished sommeliers to draw attention to Gaudry. And those in-the-know somms—like the ones at Jean-Georges and the Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center—rush to secure every bottle of Vincent Gaudry’s Le Tournebride Sancerre the second it arrives on U.S. shores. It’s always been a critical restaurant darling, enjoyed by a few lucky patrons (at steep wine list markups), and we cannot wait for you to chill it and pop the cork. 

The 2018 Le Tournebride comes from 22 acres of beautiful vines rooted in three distinct soils, including clay-limestone and marl (terres blanches), flint (silex), and stony limestone that results from weathered Kimmeridgian (caillottes). Additionally, Gaudry farms a tiny plot of 90-year-old vines on more terres blanches soils, from which he has clipped cuttings to propagate his other vineyards. 

Hand-picked when they reach perfect ripeness, these Sauvignon Blanc grapes are treated with the utmost care and vinified entirely in stainless steel tanks. The result is a fresh Sancerre with plenty of zing, piquant lemon-lime notes, and citrus zest, followed by a wave of fresh Loire Valley herbs like tarragon and anise that mingle with a flinty minerality. All you need is a hunk of your favorite cheese, a few dried apricots, and a chilled glass of this French Sauvignon Blanc, and the night is complete.

Driving through Sury-en-Vaux, it’s easy to scurry past the charming A-frame, terracotta stucco exterior of Gaudry’s nondescript winery. But if you’re ever in Sancerre, make the short trek there, and keep an eye out for the little sign that reads “Cave V-Gaudry” depicting a vintner carrying shears and a bunch of grapes. Stop, knock, and pat yourself on the back because it will be a moment you’ll remember for the rest of your life—but for now, just pop that cork.